Obituary of Nancy (Nannie) Burk

Chattanooga Times May 2, 1922

Mrs. Nancy Burk Dead; builder Burk Hotel

Mrs. Nancy Burk, 78, died yesterday at the home of her
daughter, Mrs. Ed Dayton, 63 Oak street. She was the
widow of W. A. Burk, pioneer citizen of Chattanooga,
who died more than thirty years ago. Mrs. Burk was
the builder of the Burk Hotel on Market street which
she operated for many years. Since her sale of the
hostelry it became known as the Imperial. She was
active in the management of the hotel until she was 75
years of age.

At the time of the war between the states, Mrs. Burk
resided in Cartersville. Her house was burned by
marauders in Sherman's army. She and her sisters
later rebuilt the house and Mrs. Burk is said to have
told the Union soldiers that if they burned it again
she would "hang them in chimneys". Shortly after the
close of the war, Mrs. Burk with a large family of
children, came to Chattanooga. She was noted for
thrift and ability to save. She learned the trade of
a cobbler, and, at one time made all of the shoes
worn by her family, besides supplying many of her
neighbors. She was a member of the Central Baptist
church.

Surviving Mrs. Burk, besides Mrs. Dayton, are another
daughter, Mrs. T. J. Bloss of South Pittsburg; two
sons, J.J. of Decatur, Ala., and W. H. Burk of Tampa.
The funeral will be held at Wean's chapel this
afternoon at 4. The body will be taken ((by train))
to Jasper, Tenn., for burial. ((at Hoge Cem))

Old Burk Hotel is on Cherry Street near Seventh.
During my annual vision exam, Dr. Clayton Rhodes
always asks what's new with me since the previous
visit. This year, I told him about the local history
articles that I've been writing for the
Chattanoogan.com. He asked if I knew that there used
to be hotel in the building where he and his father,
Dr. Albert C. Rhodes, once had an optometry office.
Their address was 710 Cherry Street. I didn't know
about the hotel, and went to the library in search of
information.

The microfilm of old city directories and newspapers
confirmed what Dr. Rhodes had told me. The building
was originally the Burk Hotel, named for its builder
and proprietor, Mrs. Nancy ("Nannie") Burk. Her
obituary from May 2, 1922 gives insight to her
personality and experiences which helped her in the
business world. She lived in Cartersville, GA at the
time of the Civil War. General Sherman and his troops
- described as "marauders" in her obituary - set fire
to the Burk home. The obituary said that she and her
sisters later rebuilt the house. Mrs. Burk is said to
have told the Union soldiers that if they burned it
again, she would "hang them in the chimneys." Her
husband, W. A. Burk, was a pioneer citizen of
Chattanooga, and moved his family back home following
the war.

After her husband's death in 1892 ((in Jasper, TN)) ,
Mrs. Burk learned the craft of shoemaking, and became
the cobbler not only for the shoes worn by her
children, but also by the neighbors. Two of her
children, William H. and John J. Burk, grew up to
become pioneering automobile dealers in Chattanooga.
By 1899, she had put her noted "thrift and ability to
save" to work in running a small restaurant at 116
East Seventh Street. In 1907, she opened the Burk
Hotel at 710 Cherry Street. Its dining room was
managed by her son-in-law, T. J. Bloss. The hostelry
also leased space to a picture framing and wallpaper
business. The interior included high ceilings and
hardwood floors. Though the hotel
wasn't next door to the train stations, it was very
close to the Hamilton County Courthouse. In the era
before automobiles, residents of Sale Creek and
Birchwood may have stayed at the hotel if conducting
business at the Courthouse. It also likely had budget
rates that were appealing to traveling salesmen and
railroad employees.

Nannie Burk continued to manage the hotel until 1919,
when she was 75 years old, and then sold the business.
It then was called the Majestic Hotel, owned by J.W.
Eldridge. As of 1930, the lodging went by the name
that it would have for most of its history, the Hotel
Hamilton or, at times, the Hamilton Hotel. James
Herbert Brantley operated it under the name Brantley
Hotel Operators. In the 1930's, the businesses which
also had addresses in the 700 block of Cherry Street
included the fledgling Krystal Restaurant, Southern Ad
Company, Lookout Billiard Hall, and Karrosa
Manufacturing (of handkerchiefs). In addition to the
Krystal, some names which continued into more recent
times included Martin-Thompson Sporting Goods and
Lansford's Pianos.

An oft-told tale, the Hotel Hamilton declined, along
with other downtown hotels, as cars replaced passenger
trains following World War II. Its name disappears
from the city directory after 1975.

Thanks to Drs. Clayton Rhodes and Albert Rhodes for
their contributions to this article. If you have
memories or old photos of the Burk/Majestic/Hamilton
Hotel, please send me an e-mail at
jolleyh@signaldata.net.